Red Bull Flugtag returns with a splash in 2013. Fearless men and women around the world will be launching themselves off a series of terrifyingly high platforms in self-constructed flying machines that range from the sensible to the what-on-earth-were-you-thinking?

Shopkeepers and managers in Karama have helped in adding sheen to the area after a campaign sought to honour them for keeping their outlets and surroundings clean and tidy.
Ten shops in the heart of Karama won the honour from the Waste Management Department of the Dubai Municipality, which conducted “Karama Clean Store Contest,” as part of the “Say Yes to a Clean Karama” campaign.

The cleanliness awareness drive that ran from December 26 to January 4 helped in achieving the target of spreading awareness against littering and other dirty practices, according to officials.

Khalid Mohsin Nasir Al Aamri, the head of Operations and Cleaning Section, and Sohail Mohammed Al-Awadhi, the head of Bur Dubai Cleaning Unit, distributed the trophies and certificates to the winners on Wednesday.

Mountains Way Trading Company, Karachi Darbar Restaurant and Rosaliah Perfumes bagged the first, second and third place respectively.

Bahman Taheri, the Iranian owner of Mountains Way that sells handbags and other leather accessories, said the staff did not do anything more than cleaning up the shop and its premises the normal way during the campaign.

Shelley Farrow, who was among a group of six Canadian tourists visiting the shop, said she was impressed with the general cleanliness in Dubai, in old and new areas alike.

Raja Nazakat, branch manager of Karachi Darbar Restaurant, said the eatery gave same importance to cleanliness and food safety. “During the campaign we became more careful about the hygiene practices of our customers as well. We discouraged them from throwing cigarette butts around and requested them not to litter the premises with tea cups or water bottles.”

Al-Awadhi said: “We feel that we have achieved the target of the campaign, as we found the people in these shops being very proactive in educating the public about general cleanliness.”

Abdul Karim Bajwa, the area officer from the Waste Management Department, said apart from the routine inspections by 13 municipal employees in three shifts, the department set up a new committee to make special inspections during the campaign. Of the nearly 1,500 shops in Karama, 100 shops took part in the contest. The rest of the winners of the contest are Mendello Trading, Marka Fashion, Sand Panjab Restaurant, Rafi Photo Store, City Shoes Trading, Al Waroa Gallery and Sheela Trading Co.

Vox Cinemas, Carrefour coming to BurJuman soon

14-screen multiplex, hypermarket expected to be a boon residents in the neighbourhood

By Sharmila Dhal, Senior Reporter, XPRESS

Published: 22:21 December 26, 2012

Image Credit: XPRESS/ ATIQ-UR-REHMAN

much awaited: The new additions at BurJuman will fulfill a long-felt need

Dubai Bur Dubai’s BurJuman mall is all set to get a hypermarket and a 14-screen cinema multiplex.

Eisa Adam Ebrahim, General Manager, told XPRESS on Tuesday: “BurJuman will now become home to a new Carrefour hypermarket and a 14-screen Vox Cinemas multiplex following major expansion and redevelopment of a part of the mall.”

Expansion of the landmark shopping centre begins next month and tenants in the old wing said they have been asked to vacate by December 31 to make way for the renovation.

Some of them said they will operate from the new wing during the renovation expected to last for 18 months.

The new anchor tenants will be a boon to the densely populated neighbourhood which has long felt the need for a full-fledged hypermarket and cinema.

Ebrahim said: “After the 18-month expansion and redevelopment, the Vox Multiplex and the Carrefour hypermarket, in combination with the mall’s existing retail offerings, will enable BurJuman to plug an existing gap in the retail options available in the area and serve the complete needs of the neighbourhood and its growing community. The new addition is part of BurJuman’s ongoing commitment to creating an ideal mall experience that offers the community easy access to shopping, services and entertainment.”

Tenant support

Ebrahim said the mall has been in ongoing discussions with existing tenants about the changes and has their full backing. “The project has received great support and BurJuman is very confident that the additions are exactly what tenants and shoppers in the area have been looking for. The successful completion will help further raise the mall’s profile within Dubai’s retail scene.”

Vacating retailers welcomed the new development, saying the hypermarket and cinema would add to the footfall in the mall. But with the Dubai Shopping Festival beginning next week, some wished they could stay on.

“When Dubai is preparing for its wedding day, we wish we could contribute to the event from BurJuman like we have for so many years,” said Ghalab Awad, Manager of Grand Stores, one of the mall’s oldest tenants.

“We have been here since January 24, 1994,” he said.

“DSF is the best time for business and talks are on for another space in the new wing,” said Mirwais Mohibzada, Branch Manager at Prima Gold.

“If this is good for the mall, why not? We’ve been given a temporary shop in the new section,” said Ayad Abbas, Branch Manager at Jewellery Spot.

The store in charge of another luggage and linen showroom said: “We would have stayed here during DSF if we had a choice. Earlier we heard that we would be given a three-month extension. But we now have to move out by December 31.”

When XPRESS visited the mall on Tuesday, many shops in the old wing had already downed their shutters. A board on the Adidas showroom directed customers to another location in the new wing.

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Dubai: The Municipality on Wednesday launched a 10-day awareness campaign in Karama to educate shopkeepers and residents against spitting paan (betel leaves), littering and allowing laundry to hang from balconies.

Keeping the two square kilometre area clean is a priority for municipal officials as it attracts hundreds of tourists a month, as they scout for bargains and affordable restaurants.

The area is also home to thousands of residents and includes about 1,500 shops, according to municipal officials.

Abdul Majeed Saifaie, director of Waste Management Department at Dubai Municipality, explained that shops that put up campaign posters outside their window display are automatically registered into a competition, and the top 10 cleanest shops will receive a prize for their efforts.

“We want to give them a prize that they can hang up in their shop and be proud of, so they will most likely be given a trophy and a certificate. Instilling good habits is very important because we have to keep such a populated area like this clean,” said Saifaie.

During the campaign, “Say Yes to a Clean Karama”, pamphlets and posters in English, Arabic, Urdu and Malayalam will be distributed to shops, raising awareness against spitting paan, littering, and allowing clothes to hang from balconies.

Saifaie pointed out that inspectors from the waste management department will be monitoring the shops on a regular basis and note down their efforts cleaning up their vicinity.

“We do not want to see litter around the shop and there should be nothing outside of it either, such as rubbish bags, chairs or mannequins,” he said.

This is not the first municipal campaign to focus on a district, as it was initially carried out in 2008 at Naif and then in 2009 at Al Fahidi.

As per Dubai Municipality regulations, residents caught chewing or spitting paan — which leaves a deep red stain — will be slapped with a Dh1,000 fine, while littering will attract penalties in the range of Dh100-Dh50,000.

Although the number of occurrences of paan spitting has reduced in Karama in the last few years Saifaie pointed out that its distribution has increased.

If residents hang their laundry from balconies, Dubai Municipality will first hand out a warning and, upon subsequent flouting of the rules, a fine ranging from Dh500-Dh1,500 will be slapped against them.

Berna Pereira, who owns a tailoring shop, expressed her enthusiasm for the campaign as she has been complaining for five years to the management of the property developer to clean up the area.

“People spit, throw cigarette butts, paper cups, and leave food in open bags spilled across the floor so that cats can eat it. The property developer refuses to take any action and this place then turns into a dumpyard,” she said.

UPDATE: Chopsticks closed down a couple of years back and now has been replaced with an Indian restaurant SWADES. I’m posting their menu in the next post.

I remember enjoying delicious chinese cuisine (though Indianised) at Chopsticks. It was closed for a few months for renovation I guess. I saw them open a few days back and found their delivery menu lying at my doorstep yesterday…so am posting the scanned menu here.

Chopsticks Restaurant Home Delivery Menu

chopsticks-restaurant-karama-dubai-menu001.jpg

Found this interesting article on the Raja Yoga Center website.The Raja Yoga Center is located in Karama, next to the Post Office…their website has a location map too.

Relieving stress in Karama

ROBERT FLEMMING (Staff Reporter, Khaleej Times)15 June 2006

Stress. It’s one of the most common ailments of a modern society that races ahead to achieve, meet deadlines and be successful. We are stressed out by relationships that are put under pressure by the stress of work. We are stressed out by the traffic, the heat, the lack of time, by our emotional reactions and by stress! And although we complain about this aspect of our lives, how many of us actually do anything to relieve the condition?

According to Ansuya Sunku, Director of the Bahrain Meditation Centre and Jyotika Hulmani of the Raja Yoga Centre in Karama, the answer lies in meditation. Taking time out from their peaceful lives, they have been talking to people in Wafi City about the benefits of the discipline.

“People are stressed today because there is no balance between the mind and body. We’ve become like machines competing with technology and trying to achieve goals in a shorter span of time. As that increases it creates dependence and we are losing the connection with the inner self,” says Ansuya. “Meditation is a way of connecting with that self and allows you to reach your true potential. Everyone wants peace in their life and it is there deep within you but because we are occupied with so many material things we are unable to access that space deep inside. Meditation takes away the outer dimension. When you connect with that inner self you connect with peace; that power gives you spiritual energy. The mind is energised, actions become more accurate and you become more successful.”

For the uninitiated, the principles may be sound enough but the practice would seem beyond their reach. The art of relaxation is not that easy to learn and when in our busy lives do any of us have time to chill out in a lotus position and repeat ‘I am at peace’ 372 times.

“We teach Raj Yoga which is a technique through which you become a king over yourself. Raj means ‘king’ and yoga, ‘communion’. This is meditation that helps to heal the root rather than simply treating the symptoms. “Overcoming stress by going swimming or reading a book is only a temporary respite. Through meditation you can become the master of the self and when you understand more about yourself, you know what you lack and you can fill the gaps. Raj Yoga does not require any postures or mantras. Take any comfortable position and find the stillness in the body. We make people relax their bodies because until you have that you cannot concentrate the mind. We say that we don’t have the time but we do; unconsciously we waste out time. You must do something for the inner self and meditation nourishes that.”

A registered charity, the centre has been running in Karama for four years but for the first time Ansuya and Jyotika have felt the need to share their skills and knowledge with the greater public of Dubai. It’s a free community service that provides courses and seminars in meditation, stress management, positive thinking, self esteem and emotional intelligence. But meditation is at the core. Meditation is essential in today’s world. Physical exercises help clear physical blockages; meditation clears mental blockages. Perhaps it’s time to make time to meditate.